If you have a medium to large business then you already know a lot about payroll and where it fits in with your company's systems and processes. You are looking for a new payroll system for one of multiple reasons:

• Cost - The cost of processing payroll in house including the cost of your payroll staff and software has become too high.  You are looking to reduce cost without losing any functionality.
• Expertise - You find that it is too difficult staying up to date on all the tax calculations and regulations or that their may be trends or other things in the industry that you can take advantage of.
• National Support -Your company has grown and has offices in more than one state and your local support can't keep up.
• Issues - You are starting to see too many issues with data accuracy and timing with your current payroll system or provider and you want to find a more reliable partner.
• Changes - Maybe you have a new CFO or a new accounting system or are switching related systems such as your 401(k) and are exploring what fits best or might work better.

You have a few options:

• ERP Payroll - Use the ERP payroll module is part of your overall ERP system.  It will be integrated with your general ledger and HR systems.  You can get support from the vendor on the use of the payroll software.  You might be able to get business process support from your third party implementation and consulting partner but they will not be cheap.
• Your accounting firm - You probably already have an accounting firm that helps with accounting issues.  However it could get expensive to have them research out of state issues.
• Online Payroll Company - National third party payroll service providers have the expertise and technology to process your payroll accurately and a large staff to quickly answer any of your payroll questions.

You want to use an Online Payroll Company.  What are the main things to look for?

• Cost - Obviously cost of the service is key.  It might not always make sense to go with the cheapest.
• Functions and Features - You need to make sure they can support your job functions and have the features you need now and might need in the future.  Check here for some typical payroll job functions.  Check here for our list of payroll features. 
• Support - You must be able to talk to someone that you trust and is a payroll expert when you need them.  To get an idea of some of the questions that come up that your payroll service provider should be able to answer check our list of payroll questions here.

OK, you have put together a list of features and questions for your online payroll company.  Who should you call?

• Call each of the payroll service providers to compare cost, features and support.  Check here for our list of payroll companies.
• Call your colleagues at other companies to see who they use.
• Call us to help you with the decision or contact us here.

If you need help just call us at (312) 574-0080 to talk to someone about your payroll needs.